Chair back handgrip



Aug. 21, 1951 J. w. PATTON CHAIR BACK HANDGRIP Filed Nov. 19, 1948 3 IN VEN TOR.

/0/e /v 14/. PA TTO/V BY y ATTU/Q/VE) Patented Aug. 21, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,564,924 John W. Patton, Philadelphia, Pa., assignor to American Car and Foundry Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey 3 Claims.

This invention relates to chairs and more particularly to chair back sunken handles.

The backs of chairs designed for vehicles and. other uses are usually provided with hand grip means which may be grasped by a passenger to serve as a steady rest, to adjust the back, or to shift the chair into another location. When the chair is of the overstuffed or upholstered type, the hand grip means is usually applied so that it projects beyond the sides or top of the back upholstery.

An object of the invention is to provide an upholstered or overstuffed chair back with a sunken handle.

Another object of the invention resides in the construction of a cushioned chair back whereby a portion of the frame is exposed to be utilized as a hand grip.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a hinged cushioned chair back with a top sunken hand grip located with respect to pivotal connections to give maximum leverage while back adjustment is being made.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a study of the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a folding chair looking toward the back.

Figure 2 is a sectional view of the top portion of the chair back taken on line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary elevation view of the chair back showing the hand grip portion of the top frame and the cushion pocket.

The invention is shown in connection with a chair that can be folded into a fiat package but applies equally well to chairs with stationary seats and adjustable backs or to chairs that are neither adjustable nor collapsible. The chair seat section H] has metal side frames I l on which arm rests l2 are secured. Front leg structure I 3 and rear leg structure 14 are hinged to the seat section in any suitable manner such that they can be swung into folded position. The leg structures are connected by pivoted side links l5 and 16 so that they will Swing together under the bottom of the seat section.

The chair back I! has an integral inverted U- shaped supporting frame composed of a transversely extending top [8, vertically extending legs l9 and outwardly extending feet 20 at the bottom. of the legs. This frame can 'be formed as a hollow member of square cross section as shown or it may be of another desired form. The frame, with the exception of feet 20, is embedded in cushion 2| adjacent the top and sides thereof. Cushion 2| has a sheet material covering 22 over the front, top and sides thereof and a sheet material covering 23 over the rear. These coverings may be fabric, leather or other similar material and they are suitably secured together to encase the cushion.

Feet 20 are mounted in journals 24 fixed to the rear portions of the seat side frames to provide a pivotal mounting for the back such that it can be swung toward and away from the seat section for collapsing or returning the chair to seating position. Link I6 is fixed to the sides of the back and the leg structures so that they will move in unison during adjustment.

The back cushion is formed with a pocket 25 centrally of the top portion and sufficiently deep to expose a portion of the frame top 18 to provide a hand grip section 26. The front and rear coverings terminate adjacent the pocket and the walls of the cushion forming the pocket are covered by a facing 21 formed of leather, plastic or other suitable sheet material that is sewed to the front and rear coverings as indicated by numeral 28. The facing is also secured to the cushion at the forward end of the pocket by anchored pins 29.

It will be seen that the hand grip is part of the frame and lies within the cushion pocket so that it does not project beyond the cushion. The location of the hand grip relative to the hinge points for the back provides a maximum lever arm when the chair is folded or unfolded. Such lever arm promotes ease of adjustment.

The invention may be modified in various respects as will occur to those skilled in the art and the exclusive use of all modifications as come within the scope of the appended claims is contemplated.

What is claimed is:

1. In a chair back, a cushion, an integrally formed supporting frame within and adjacent the back of the cushion and extending adjacent the sides and across the top thereof, said cushion having a central top pocket in the back portion thereof exposing a portion of the frame top for use as a hand grip, a covering secured against the exposed faces of the cushion, and a facing secured against the cushion walls forming the pocket.

2. In a chair having a base frame and side arms secured thereto, a back comprising, a cushion, an inverted U-shaped hollow frame having outstanding feet at the bottom of the legs pivotally secured to said arms, said frame being imbedded in said cushion and said cushion having a pocket formed in the top thereof exposing 3 4 a portion of the frame top for use as a hand grip, REFERENCES CITED and a covering Secured against the exposed The following references are of record in the faces of the cushion. t f me of this patent;

3. In a chair back, a cushion, an in egral rame Within the cushion extending adjacent the back 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS thereof, said frame having a topadjacent the top Number Name Date of the cushion and legs adjacent the sides of the D. 80,605 Chapman Mar. 4, 1930 cushion, said cushion having a top pocket in the 602,574 Dalton Apr. 19, 1898 back portion thereof exposing a section of the 1,304,579 Lipps May 27, 1919 frame top for use as a hand grip, and a covering 10 1,492,798 Houston May 6, 1924 secured against the exposed faces of said cushion. FOREIGN PATENTS JOHN PATTON Number Country Date 356,412 Great Britain Sept. 10, 1931 

